Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

Please or to access all these features

Baby names

Find baby name inspiration and advice on the Mumsnet Baby Names forum.

Nevaeh as a girl's name.. Yay or nay?

279 replies

bowsandbangles · 01/07/2021 14:35

I'm currently expecting a DD and my DP likes the name Nevaeh but I think is sounds really tacky and well...made up.
It's Heaven spelt backwards... I work at a nursery and there are 2 babies with that name!
I prefer traditional solid names with meaning and substance behind them, rather than made up sounding ones.
Imagine the poor kids having to spend their lives repeating and explaining their name, having to spelt it out endlessly when people don't "get" it?

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
RAOK · 01/07/2021 20:34

It’s the worst (joint with Neveah) I was hoping it had fallen out of fashion.

Spidey66 · 01/07/2021 20:43

Awful, awful name.

RestingStitchFace · 01/07/2021 23:19

Dreadful....

Nohomemadecandles · 01/07/2021 23:27

It's fecking awful.

And yes, everyone knows it's heaven backwards.

urghicba · 01/07/2021 23:37

Aren't all names originally made up?

I think it's just a name, not tacky or chavvy. The amount of snobs on this thread 🙈

Saidtoomuch · 01/07/2021 23:41

I agree its a bit satanic sounding. Reminds me of when we were kids and used to play vinyls backwards to look for satanic messages and summon something imaginary Blush

hawkehurstgang · 02/07/2021 05:34

Nooooooo

EdgeOfACoin · 02/07/2021 06:18

This is what Wikipedia has to say about the name:

The name Nevaeh is the word "Heaven" spelled backwards. An erroneous belief is that the name has an Irish origin, a variation of the name Niamh, which is still common in Ireland today.

Nevaeh was a rare given name before singer Sonny Sandoval of the rock group P.O.D. named his daughter Nevaeh in 2000. He was then featured in the fall of that year on the television program MTV Cribs, and use of the name became widespread.[1]

Nevaeh first entered the top 1000 names for girls born in the United States in 2001 when its popularity shot up making it the 266th most common name, according to the US Social Security Administration.[2] By 2010, it was the 25th most popular given name overall for all girls born in the United States in that year. It was the third most popular name for black girls born in New York City in 2010 and the third most popular name given to girls born in 2010 in New Mexico, the state where it is most popular; Nevaeh did not appear among the top 10 names in any other state in that year.[2][3] In 2007 it was the top name among black girls born in Colorado.[4]

Though the name's use the first year or two of its popularity can probably be attributed to Sonny Sandoval's daughter, the further spread of Nevaeh's popularity since is in large part an Internet phenomenon. The name is widely known and discussed on baby naming boards. It has acquired a meaning of "child from heaven".[5]

The name gained exposure on the reality TV show Flavor of Love Girls: Charm School, when contestant Heather strongly insisted on being referred to as Nevaeh, a name she had recently adopted to further her singing career. The other participants refused to indulge her in this, calling it ridiculous, and she was expelled in the second episode.

I confess, the name is not to my taste. However, there's a level of vitriol towards Nevaeh on here that seems insane to me.

Newestname001 · 02/07/2021 07:56

@Ulna

It always makes me think of naevus.

Please don't Sad

Sorry - This ^^. It was the first thing which came to mind... 🌹

Blueskytoday06 · 02/07/2021 07:59

It's a tad chavvy

anxiouscrazymum · 02/07/2021 08:09

Horrendous made up name. It's incredibly tacky!

Schrutesbeets · 02/07/2021 08:12

I hate it! I remember hearing it for the first time about 10 years ago and laughing out loud at how bad it was. Sorry.

BSJohnson · 02/07/2021 12:41

I feel like it positions the child very firmly in the lower working class, so I’d worry it would limit her in the future.

LyndaLaHughes · 02/07/2021 14:51

@Awwlookatmybabyspider

I love it. However on here If your kids haven't got posh names such as Otillie. Arabella. Octavia. Juliette or Henrietta its "tacky".
What a ridiculous comment. There is a difference between a made up name of which most do tend to be tacky and an ordinary name. To say anything other than a ridiculously posh name is acceptable on here is utter rubbish. The most commonly discussed names are perfectly ordinary every day names. Nevaeh is everywhere and really overused now. Plus sorry it is tacky. Names where parents have gone for "interesting" spellings which just look like they can't spell are tacky also.
SingingInTheShithouse · 02/07/2021 15:51

Crikey the misplaced snobbery on here is unreal Confused

WTAF is wrong with a made up name. Many such as Willow become popular well liked names & every name was made up somewhere along the line

GreyhoundG1rl · 02/07/2021 15:52

I don't believe it's snobbery, and it certainly isn't misplaced...

SingingInTheShithouse · 02/07/2021 15:53

& FTR I personally think Octavia, Henrietta Etc are vile pretentious names

SingingInTheShithouse · 02/07/2021 15:54

I don't believe it's snobbery, and it certainly isn't misplaced

You are entitled to your opinion ofc, but I couldn't disagree more 🤷‍♀️

TH22 · 02/07/2021 15:55

Absolutely hideous, I'm sorry.

MaMelon · 02/07/2021 15:56

The cry of ‘snobbery’ always goes up when daft names dreamt up by slebs are called into question. Only yooneeq names are acceptable to some on MN.

Comedycook · 02/07/2021 15:58

@SingingInTheShithouse

& FTR I personally think Octavia, Henrietta Etc are vile pretentious names
So do I. In fact, I dislike names which are associated with either end of the social class spectrum.
Mymapuddlington · 02/07/2021 15:59

Is it snobbery to say K8ee and Ellahnah are ridiculous too? Nevaeh is well known as backwards heaven because it was a massive deal when the first poor child was lumbered with it.

claralara42 · 02/07/2021 16:03

Crikey the misplaced snobbery on here is unreal confused

I don't think you get to decide where our snobbery should be placed.

SingingInTheShithouse · 02/07/2021 16:03

Oh I absolutely can Grin

GreyhoundG1rl · 02/07/2021 16:05

@SingingInTheShithouse

Oh I absolutely can Grin
Yawn...